Don't Fence Me In: Mastery, Creativity and Adventure in the Education of Gifted Kids

Don't Fence Me In
Mastery, Creativity and Adventure
in the Education of Gifted Kids
Anne M. Rinkenberger, M.S., LMFT

Copyright 2009 Living With Live Wires
Dabrowski on Authentic Education

Parents and teachers, he believed, are looking for ways to
provide humane education, one that enhances development
and respects individual children as unique and unrepeatable,
while at the same time awakens children to the knowledge
that this is so of others as well as for themselves.

Such an education strives for the harmony that respects, not
rejects differences, and it is this harmony of true education
with higher human values that differentiates the education
of human beings from the training of animals.
Marlene D. Rankel, Ph.D.
Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration,
2008

Piirto on Creativity
 In the book, Understanding Creativity, the author states
− Creativity is the underpinning, the basement, the foundation
that permits talent to be realized. To be creative is
necessary in the realization of a fulfilling life...
− We are all creative.
 Those who are more creative than others have learned to take
risks, to value complexity, to see the world, or their own
surroundings with naiveté.
 Jane Piirto, Ph.D.
Understanding Creativity, 2004

Piirto on Creativity
What is unnatural and sad is for creativity to be repressed,
suppressed, and stymied through the process of growing up
and being educated.
What happens to most of us is that somewhere along the way,
and often necessarily, we begin to distrust our creative self.
Survival dictates that we subordinate our creative poetic self
to a more practical self. We go along and forget who we are
or who we were.
 Jane Piirto, Ph.D.
Understanding Creativity, 2004

Creativity and Gifted Children
• A gifted child’s view of the world is often non-traditional and
divergent; he sees numerous possibilities hidden to others (Webb,
Meckstroth, & Tolan, 1982)
• Being able to see, hear, feel and experience aspects of life that
most people miss is a necessary part of creative production (Dixon,
1983)
• High levels of sensitivity may be what drives intellectual
giftedness; they allow the child to pick up on vast amounts of input
from his environment (Freeman, 1985).
• Generally, when children are allowed to learn creatively, we unlock
powerful and amazing learning potential (Rivero, 2002)

Dabrowski's Overexcitabilities
Psychomotor
Sensual
Imaginational
Intellectual
Emotional

Overexcitabilities and Creativity
Piechowski suggested that,
The Overexcitabilities or “original equipment”
are basic components of giftedness shared by
many types of gifted and creative individuals.
 Susan Daniels & Michael Piechowski
Living With Intensity, 2009

Piechowski stated,
The OEs contribute significantly to the
creator's drive, vivid sensory experience,
relentless searching, power to envision
possibilities, and the intensity and
complexity of feeling involved in creative
expression.

Piechowski and Colangelo emphasized that
the OEs are not specific domains of talent or
prodigious achievement. Rather, they
represent the kind of endowment that feeds,
nourishes, enriches, empowers, and amplifies
talent.

Investment Theory of Creativity
Creative people decide to buy low and sell high in the world
of ideas – that is, they generate ideas that tend to “defy the
crowd” (buy low), and then, when they have persuaded
many people, they sell high, meaning they move on to the
next unpopular idea.
Creativity, according to the investment theory, is in large
part a decision. The view of creativity as a decision suggests
that creativity can be developed.
Robert J. Sternberg
Wisdom, Intelligence, and Creativity Synthesized, 2003

Becoming A Role Model
The most powerful way for teachers to
develop creativity in children is to role model
creativity.
Children develop creativity not when they
are told to, but when they are shown how.
Robert J. Sternberg

Reflective Skills - Mindfulness
What would happen if teachers were aware of the scientific
finding that how a person reflects internally will shape how
he treats both himself and others?
If teachers became aware that attuning to the self- - being
mindful – can alter the brain's ability to create flexibility and
self-observation, empathy, and morality, wouldn't it be
worth the time to teach such reflective skills first to
teachers and then, in age-appropriate ways, to the students
themselves?
Reflection is the skill that embeds self-knowing and empathy
in the curriculum.
Daniel J. Siegel, M.D.
The Mindful Brain, 2007

Emotional Challenges with
Gifted Children
Perfectionism
Intensity
Stress

Perfectionism
Susan Daniels and Michael Peichowski, in Living with Intensity, state
that:

Our highly excitable children's drive for perfect performance is
where their intellectual intensity intersects with their emotional
development.

The field of gifted education is replete with means to
accommodate children's intellectual needs, but a child's
intellectual overexcitability signals a need for more holistic
supportive responses from parents and teachers – ones that
encompass and nurture their affective and emotional
development, self-concept, self-esteem, and self-discipline as
well.

Emotional Intensity

The intensity and sensitivity of gifted children spreads
through everything they do – their everyday interactions with
others, their reactions to events, and even their attitudes
toward themselves.

Gifted children seem to have an extra emotional sensor, or a
special awareness, that picks up the slightest emotions.

The attitudes and actions of others can be a major source of
stress for them.
Webb, et. al.
A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children, 2007

Stress

Stress management, self-awareness, and interpersonal skills
often determine whether a child will lead a successful and
healthy life.

Long-term studies with a wide range of people over a period
of more than 50 years have documented that the way in
which individual handle stress predicts whether or not they
will reach their potential.

In the same way that academic ability can be cultivated so
can many components of resilience and stress management.
Webb, et. al.
A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children, 2007

Creative Strategies that Modulate
Perfectionism, Intensity and Stress
Redefine Problems
Giving children latitude in making choices helps
them to develop taste and good judgment,
both of which are essential elements of
creativity.
Robert J. Sternberg


Encourage Idea Generation

Adults and children should collaborate to identify
and encourage any creative aspects of ideas that
are presented.

When suggested ideas don't seem to have much
value, teachers should suggest new approaches,
preferably ones that incorporate at least some
aspects of the previous ides that seemed in
themselves not to have much value.
Robert J. Sternberg


Allow Mistakes

When children make mistakes, teachers should ask them to
analyze and discuss the mistakes.

Often, mistakes or weak ideas contain the germ of correct
answers or good ideas.

In Japan, teachers spend entire class periods asking children
to analyze the mistakes in their mathematical thinking.

For the teacher who wants to make a difference, exploring
mistakes can be an opportunity for learning and growing.
Robert J. Sternberg


Encourage Sensible Risk-Taking

Few children are willing to take risks in school, because
they learn that taking risks can be costly.

Perfect test scores and papers receive praise and open
up future possibilities.

To help children learn to take sensible risks, adults can
encourage them to take some intellectual risks with
courses, with activities, and with what they say to
adults – to develop a sense of how to assess risks.
Robert J. Sternberg

Motivational Challenges

Underachievement
− Children's behaviors are not just random events. All
behaviors, even maladaptive ones, are motivated to
meet some need.
Webb, et. al.
A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children2007

Creativity Strategies to Motivate
Gifted Children

Help Children Find What They Love to Do

Helping children find what they really love to do is
often hard and frustrating work.

Yet, sharing the frustration with them now is better
than leaving them to face it alone later.

Robert J. Sternberg


Creativity Strategies to Motivate
Gifted Children

Help Children Build Self-Efficacy

The main limitation on what children can do
is what they think they can do.

All children have the capacity to be creators
and to experience the joy associated with
making something new, but first they must be
given a strong base for creativity.
Robert J. Sternberg

Mastery
 George Leonard, author of
Mastery: The Keys to Success and
Long-Term Fulfillment, writes,
 Early in life, we are urged to
study hard, so that we'll get good
grades.
 We are told to get good grades so
that we'll graduate from high
school and get into college.
 We are told to graduate from
high school and get into college
so that we'll get a good job.
 We are told to get a good job so
that we can buy a house and a
car.
 Again and again we are told to do
one thing only so that we can get
something else.
 We spend our lives stretched on
an iron rack of contingencies.
 Contingencies, no question about
it, are important. The
achievement of goals is
important.
 But the real juice of life, is to be
found not in the products of our
efforts as in the process of living
itself, in how it feels to be alive.

Path of Mastery
Progress
Plateau
Progress
Plateau

Life of Mastery
George Leonard writes:
• If our life is a good one, a life of mastery, most of it will be
spent on the plateau. If not, a large part of it may well be
spent in restless, distracted, ultimately self-destructive
attempts to escape the plateau.
• The question remains: Where in our upbringing, our
schooling, our career are we explicitly taught to value, to
enjoy, even to love the plateau, the long stretch of diligent
effort with no seeming progress?
George Leonard
Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment,1992

Social Challenges with Gifted
Children

Introversion

Peer Relationships

Challenging Values and Traditions

Introversion

Introverts are not likely to approach new
children; they are more likely to wait for
others to initiate friendships.

They need time to observe a situation before
joining in and don't feel the need for as many
friends as extroverts do.
Webb, et. al., 2007
A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children

Peer Relationships

Peer relationships are issues for almost every gifted
child.

Because their interests and behaviors are often unusual
and different from age peers, they may find few peers
of their own age in their school or neighborhood.

Gifted children with unusually high intellectual abilities,
intensities, and sensitivities can have even more
difficulties finding friends among children their age.
Webb, et. al., 2007

Challenging Values and Traditions

Gifted children's perfectionism, exacting nature, literal
interpretation of events, and concern for truth and justice –
especially in those who are auditory-sequential learners –
motivate their strong reactions.


Their moral sense and need for truth and justice are so
strong that they must be addressed in the moment.
Webb, et. al., 2007

Creativity Strategies that Improve
Socialization of Gifted Children

Imagine Things From Others' Point of View

Teachers and parents should encourage their
children to see the importance of understanding,
respecting, and responding to other people's points
of view.

This is important, as many bright and potentially
creative children never achieve success because
they do not develop practical intelligence.
Robert J. Sternberg


Encourage Creative Collaboration

Collaboration can spur creativity.

Teachers can encourage children to learn by
example by collaborating with creative
people.
Robert J. Sternberg


Encourage Children to Identify and Surmount
Obstacles

When children attempt to surmount an obstacle,
they should be praised for the effort, whether or
not they were entirely successful.

Teachers and parents can point out aspects of the
effort that were successful and why, and suggest
other ways to confront the obstacles.
Robert J. Sternberg

Adventure
Going in
 Preparat
ion
 Practice
 Researc
h
 Predict
Experiencing
 The
unknown
 Risk
 Uncertain
ty
 Explorati
on
Coming out
 Overcoming
fear
 Self-confidence
 Dealing with
chaos
 Perseverance

You Can Make the Difference

YOU already are your own coach through your
professional development efforts and you can
enhance your own personal creativity each
day.

YOU can provide the creative culture for your
students when you become a powerful
mentor and coach to inspire creativity in
their lives.

Balance in Successful Individuals
Successful individuals are those who have:

creative skills, to produce a vision for how they intend
to make the world a better place for everyone;

analytical intellectual skills, to assess their vision and
those of others;

practical intellectual skills, to carry out their vision and
persuade people of its value;

and wisdom, to ensure that their vision is not a selfish
one.
Robert J. Sternberg

QUESTIONS?
Anne M. Rinkenberger, M.S., LMFT
Anne@LivingWithLiveWires.com

Don't Fence Me In: Mastery, Creativity and Adventure in the Education of Gifted Kids

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